Welcome to the wonderful world of building and flying your own amateur-built aircraft!
Even though the word amateur these days has come to mean “not very professional” it was originally a compliment. The word amateur comes from the Latin word amore, which means to do something for love. In other words, people who are amateurs do things for the “love of it” and not just “for money” as the mere professionals do. Love is definitely a higher calling than money!
Many Canadians have built and flown their own amateur-built aircraft. Why? Because amateur-built aircraft:
- Can be cheaper to buy and fly than an equivalent certified aircraft
- Can often offer more performance than a certified aircraft
- Are more easily customized to your individual needs than a certified aircraft
- Offer more aircraft type choices than are currently available in certified aircraft (There are currently about 30 certified light aircraft in production and over 700 amateur-built plans and kits available)
- Offer the chance to get to know almost everything about one individual aircraft – since you built it!
- Give the chance to learn and practice new skills
- Offer the opportunity to do your own maintenance
- Offer the chance to own a truly unique aircraft and not just another factory-produced aircraft
For more information on the Amateur-Built category, consult COPA’s Guide to Amateur Builts